A standard planning block model for Phelps Dodge North America Operations has been developed to improve mine planning efficiency and performance in a skill starved environment. The model saves time on software management and training; consolidates data and standard information/output; enhances evaluation and strategic process and improve communication between sites.

Pit Optimisation using the Lerch Grossman algorithm has been successfully applied in many deposits. Pit shells often form the basis for scheduling. For commodities requiring blending this can provide challenges. Adoption of Maximiser technology addresses these challenges.

The focus of the presentation will be the use of the TSM Energy/GHG Indicators to stimulate the evolution of energy/GHG management systems in facilities from heavy industry. Details of the managment standard contained in the TSM Indicators will be described. The methodology of the onsite assessment will be presented. Finally, the results of the site assessments and related experiences will be discussed.

Supplying ventilation in underground mines can be one of the most energy demanding services. Consequently, there is significant interest in reducing the overall demands of the ventilation system in such initiatives as ventilation on demand, using other alternatives to power mine vehicles to replace diesel engines.

The presentation will put into prospective various control strategies and their systems having a potential impact on the power consumption connected to ventilation.

Preparation at Agnico Eagle’s Goldex mine, located in Val d’Or, has been underway since August 2005 for production in the second half of 2008. The presentation will include an update on the pre-production construction and development work. The challenges for this low grade underground mine and the approach to obtain a high production rate will be discussed.

This paper describes underhand cut and fill mining methods used at the Lucky Friday, Stillwater and Galena mines in the western United States of America. Underhand mining is used to safely mine in difficult ground conditions and as a primary miming method where access below the ore is limited. Details of the operational aspects of the backfilling and mining cycles at each mine will be presented as well as a summary of the mechanical behavior of the backfill.

The recent purchase of the on-site contract crushing plant and equipment by an Australian Iron Ore miner presented an opportunity to develop asset strategies and a zero based budget directly aligned to the business goals. This however was not a simple task due to poor historical records and a general lack of information. These challenges were overcome and the benefits of a documented maintenance strategy, a justifiable zero based budget and employee engagement were realized. This paper...

This paper compares an integrated evaluation approach to decision making with more traditional sensitivity analysis and Monte Carlo simulation. The primary objectives to highlight the differences in NPV that can arise between these different methods. The esults are compared to a "virtual" ore body (reality) created from sampling data.

Discrete event simulation is a powerful tool for maximizing throughputs of existing systems and designing new ones. The paper describes how the technology has been applied in iron ore handling in Brazil, Australia and Canada to:• test the outcomes and benefits of changing operational practices in ore handling, rail and port systems to achieve increases in throughput with minimal capital investment. • demonstrate the incremental and aggregate benefits of alternatives for system improvement...

This Company was operating equipment with no routine maintenance simply because it did not affect plant availability. The fact is that the hidden failure costs of this equipment were misunderstood. By exploring the real hidden costs of failure it was determined that efficiency losses were dramatically affecting plant output. By undertaking a RCM study, maintenance plans were developed to reduce unplanned equipment breakdowns. By reducing unplanned breakdowns the predicted reduction in...

Nevsun Resources Ltd. Bisha Project is a gold and base metals development project located in the Gash Barka region of west-central Eritrea. The project has the potential to be one of the largest industrial developments in the country and Eritreans have no experience with modern mining. Nevsun recognized early that the success of the Bisha Project required meaningful engagement with all levels of Eritrean society. Meaningful engagement required not only full disclosure, but also capacity...

The SLon Vertical Ring and Pulsating High Gradient Magnetic Separator was developed to overcome multiple disadvantages associated with traditional horizontal type Wet High Intensity Magnetic Separators (WHIMS) which have been in service for many decades for recovering iron ore and other minerals. Proven successful, with hundreds of units now upgrading low-grade iron ores and maximizing recovery of fines throughout China, the technology is now being tested in the Western world.This paper will...

Good mechanical strength of green iron ore pellets is fundamentally required to avoid breakage and excessive deformation during their handling. However, achieving a minimum quality of green balls, that will allow them to survive handling, might not be optimum for the induration process. Measurements of bed void fraction, green balls sphericity as well as bed permeability were carried out on various samples of green iron ore pellets having different mechanical strength. Results show that bed...

Iron ore pelletizing necessitates the agglomeration of ground particles, in which mechanisms are closely related to balling productivity and green ball quality. A method was developed at COREM in order to observe the mechanisms occurring in industrial balling devices. Sampling campaigns were performed in various pellet plants to visualize the genesis of green ball formation. This was done through the use of a coloured tracer (fluorescent pigment) mixed to the fresh feed. Pellets from the...

Currently, the Corus Ijmuiden pellet plant produces circa 4.6 mln ton pellets per annum. Corus Ijmuiden is about to increase its pig iron production to 6.4 mln ton HM per annum. The burden of the blast furnaces consists of approximately 50% high basicity sinter and 50% acid pellets, both produced in-house. To accomodate the increased pig iron production, the capacity of the pellet plant needs to be increased to 5.0 mln ton per annum.The productivity is increased by modifications to the plant...

LabMag Iron Ore Project is located in Labrador, near Schefferville. The property contains 3.6 billion tonnes of proven and probable reserves. With a planned annual production capacity of 15 million tonnes, it is currently the world's largest pellet project in development. A pre-feasibility study has been completed and the company has embarked on a feasibility study. Forming a strategic partnership with potential consumers to finance the project, planned for completion in 2011, is now the...

The use of several new technologies and control systems aimed at energy savings in a mining operation could lead to believe that it is enough to simply add the potential energy savings of each of these technologies to evaluate the total savings. A simplistic addition of the savings percentages could, in some cases, exceed 100%, which is obviously completely incoherent. The CANMET-MMSL is presently conducting a study and its results will be used to assess the influence of certain technologies...

The arrival of new technologies on the market of portable rock drills combined with the need for mines to improve electric consumption made it possible to identify the potential of two new types of rock drill presently in use in South Africa, namely the electric and the water powered hydraulic rock drill.

In collaboration with Niobec and Giant Sleeping Mines of Cambior Inc. and Hydro-Quebec, the real potential of energy savings of the hydraulic and electric portable rock drills compared to...

The Ontario Mining Association and Ontario Power Authority initiated a pilot project in 2006 aimed at improving the overall energy performance of compressed air in Ontario's mining sector. Three mine sites, representing a cross section of mine size and level of energy management practices, participated in the pilot project. The participants implemented a process of detecting, measuring and managing system inefficiencies with an emphasis to reduce air leaks and wastage. As part of building...

Main ventilation fans are used in all the mines and they run continuously 24 hours a day and 365 days in a year. Any improvement in their performance can lead to considerable power saving. The basic principle for selection, operations, and related measures are discussed in brief in the paper. The contribution of different elements of mine fan on its performance is discussed in brief. The means to improve efficiency of a running fan is also discussed and the importance of saving even 1 kwh is...

This topic defines a new mining and process concept for recovery of raw bitumen from the Athabasca Oil Sands. This process is viewed as a supplemental bitumen recovery process using existing infrastructure for water, power and access. The recovery process is at the concept stage, having had small bench scale tests, an energy balance and some preliminary cost analyses completed. The results of these exercises have been quite positive.

Energy and environmental policy issues have gained visibility and importance in Ottawa in recent years. Heightened awareness of climate change, increased linkages to clean air and health, strong growth of oil sands development, and frequent front-page media attention have served to move these issues to the top of the public mind. A minority government situation has politicized these issues more than would otherwise be the case - each political party is aiming to be seen as the greenest. ...

Unplanned ore dilution has a direct and large influence on the cost of a stope, and ultimately on the profitability of a mining operation. This paper presents the results of a study of the factors causing ore dilution in a blasthole stoping environment. A series of 3-D numerical models were developed and analyzed to examine the effect of mining depth, stope geometry and stope setting within the orezone extraction sequence. To quantify modelled ore dilution from the three-dimensional...

The salting scam at Busang offers an opportunity to improve resource estimation practice, but only if the community of resource estimation specialists correctly understands what actually happened. In the 10 years since Busang was exposed as a gigantic fraud, many of the facts of the geology and resource estimation work on the project have become confounded with myths and mistaken assumptions. The blurring of myth and reality makes it harder to extract the right lessons from this failed...

IOC has successfully used model based advanced control and soft sensors (since 2002) to control the six, straight grate Dravo pelletizing lines at Labrador City. The initial objective was to reduce energy consumption. However, the plant Operations staff exploited the improved control and process stability to deliver a sustained production rate increase.

Advanced Process Control (APC) is the supervisory control layer above the DCS. APC changes the heat addition rate on a given machine to...

In today’s evolving and globalized world, mining companies are being pressured to move beyond compliance towards long-term sustainability and sustainable development. Companies are expected to “engage” communities and measure the success of these engagements without a clear understanding of “how” to do this. This move, away from compliance, develops more of a focus on “Community” Social Responsibility and sustainability. This shift leads to the development of world-class projects that...

A screw dryer heated by electromagnetic induction was developed and installed at Mines Niobec to dry a niobium concentrate. This dryer allows to achieve a reduction of the dust and green house gases emissions at the plant. It offers an easy control, an improved energy efficiency and it can be used to dry granular materials, powders and others products usually dried in a rotary dryer or in a screw dryer using a thermal fluid.

Substantial reductions in the exposure of underground miners to diesel particulate matter is achievable only through wide implementation of advanced diesel emissions control technologies, such as diesel particulate filter systems. Recent laboratory and field studies showed that these technologies are capable of substantial reductions in total particulate and elemental carbon mass emissions. It was also shown that these technologies substantially change the physical properties and chemical...

The Cardinal River Mine was in the process of winding down in 2004. During the preliminary phases of the closure process, the price of seaborne traded metallurgical coal jumped to record levels and customers began aggressively seeking new sources of supply. Several months later, the owners of Elk Valley Coal decided to begin mining at the Cheviot mining area. This would extend the life of the Cardinal River mine by over 20 years. The Cheviot Project had been delayed by low coal prices,...

In the global scenario, mining companies and governments are being pressured to make decisions regarding the model of mine development in remote areas. It is imperative that both mining companies and policy makers understand how these decisions impact the industry’s ability to attract and retain skilled employees, and facilitate high quality of life in the local existing communities.

This paper discusses a multiple case study developed in collaboration a Brazilian mining company - Companhia...

One of the major issues facing the Mining Industry is the management of information… With all of the sources of data in our fleets and plants we need to ensure that data from these sources can be captured, stored, analyzed and presented to our people for decision support in both operations and maintenance.

Today there is more on-board computing capability in trucks and shovels than we had on our desktops 3 years ago. How do we harness the data that is streaming off this equipment and...

Synthetic fuel is a liquid hydrocarbon fuel synthesized from unconventional resources such as tar sands, coal, heavy oil and oil shale. The reserves of these unconventional resources are immense and will be a major energy source for the 21st Century as the availability of conventional oil declines. In this paper, the authors review the available global resource distributions, production data, research frontiers, and current research organizations involved in these frontiers for tar sands,...

Limit equilibrium methods have been shown to be ineffective in predicting the potential for highwall failure in many instances in coal mines around the world. Slope engineers have for many years recognised a Block Thrust Failure Mechanism for slope failures, but little work had been done before 2000 on the actual mechanisms which must be responsible for the failure. The purpose of this paper is to extend the practical application of the analytical method developed from mechanism studies to...

The slag in iron ore pellets allows wet sintering during firing and brings to suitable bounding. The process of slag formation differs whether it is taking place in the core or in the external zone of a pellet. In the core, depending on the temperature and CO/CO2 partial pressure ratio, hematite can be reduced to secondary magnetite and react with silica to generate the slag. The reaction rim that appears at the outskirts of the silica particle reacting with magnetite is considered as the...

The path by which hydrogen supply is provided to any end use application will have a strong effect on the specific economics and price stability for that product supply and the flexibility with which it can be used. The objective of this paper is to present those variables which play a significant role in the selection of the hydrogen production technology, with a particular focus...

Inco’s Sudbury operations consist of integrated mining, smelting and refining operations that produce approximately 250 million pounds of nickel annually and a similar amount of copper. Annual energy costs for these operations are more than $200 million (Can.)Programs to reduce energy costs have been in place for more than twenty years. This paper describes recent changes that have been made to the programs that have resulted in substantial energy cost reductions. They include both...

Researchers at the Pittsburgh Research Laboratory (PRL) of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) work to reduce respirable dust exposures in mining operations. One focus of this research is silica dust control for surface and underground operations in the metal/nonmetal mining industry. PRL researchers analyze dust sampling results from the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to identify high-risk commodities and occupations to guide research efforts. ...

As an occupational culture, mining comes with its own set of rules, agendas and values. Yet mines operate in the traditional territories of indigenous communities, with whom specific agreements are negotiated that commit to respect culture, economy and environment. Mines also employ extremely diverse workforces whose value systems often come into conflict. This paper will discuss ways that NWT diamond mines have adapted to their workforce, to ensure that rights and cultures of their diverse...

Mineral extraction leads to waste generation that could impact the land environment and land use. The nature of the ore influences substantially the problems associated with the storage and disposal of wastes. The major objectives of this containment are to avoid pollution and to contain the tailings safely and permanently. Thickening of mine tailings is a relatively new concept for sustainable management of the tailings. Removal of water from the tailings to form a paste instead of slurry...

Every year the conventional direct reduction processes – Midrex and HYL III – increased their market share in the world steel production, even though they are only economically feasible in countries where natural gas is available at competitive prices.

In this context, the new Midrex projects are based on large reactors (Megamod - 1.5 to 1.8 Mt/y of DRI), reduction temperatures of the metallic burden up to 850oC, with bustle gas temperatures between 960oC e 1050oC. Thus, the requirements of...